


love bites

by grizz



Category: Shazam! (2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Angst, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Fluff, Graphic Transformations, M/M, Murder, Rated M for violence and language, There will be no smut, anatomically correct wolves, billy is an unintentional bad guy for much of the beginning, i don't know how to tag these things, just slightly larger, kind of - billy just doesn't like freddy that much at the start, lycanthropy is only contagious if consent is given - otherwise its just a bite, no bipedals, questionable cannibalism (are werewolves considered cannibals?), saliva contains the disease, spoilers for shazam (2019), supernatural fanboy!freddy, werewolf!shazam
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-14
Updated: 2019-04-14
Packaged: 2020-01-13 11:11:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18467755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grizz/pseuds/grizz
Summary: Billy Batson is Shazam's last hope of rebuilding the pack. Lycanthropy is a dangerous condition but one worth preserving, as it can be a beneficial tool in the right hands. Besides, only a lycanthrope can kill another lycanthrope and the disease has been bestowed upon a person who threatens to bring down the whole world.





	love bites

**Author's Note:**

> Shout out to the lovely Freebat discord who heavily contributed to this <3 You guys are awesome
> 
> Fic will loosely follow the film plot wise, but will otherwise deviate heavily. I also seen the movie once, a week ago, so even the parts that do follow along will not be entirely accurate due to the fallacies of memory.

He couldn't breathe. Billy Batson could not breathe. His lungs had seized up in his chest as his fingers involuntarily curled tighter around the strap of his bag. The world around him faded as the blood rushing through his ears blocked out all sound and the lack of oxygen was making him dizzy. Tears threatened to spill down his cheeks, fresh, hot, and altogether ugly. In the palm of his hand, he clutched a compass ball, squeezing it harder and harder until the creak of plastic brought him back into the real world. With a sharp intake of breath, clarity was restored to him. 

Leaning down, his forearms pressed into his thighs and his head nearly between his knees, he focused purely on breathing. Struggling to ground himself in reality once again. The fingers clutching the small plastic ball slowly unfurled and his eyes desperately roved over it, inspecting the compass for damage. The idea he might have cracked it only spiked his heart rate again and nearly sent him spiraling into another panic attack. It seemed unscathed however, but the anxiety still pricked at the back of his throat as if he'd swallowed a boiled egg but hadn't quite gotten it down.  
The onset of emotions had been sparked by words and actions not even directed towards himself. In fact, it had been focused on his new (but undoubtedly temporary) roommate, Freddy. The harsh words and literal violence had been directed at Freddy yet that didn't help lessen the sting any. Billy had learned not to grow attached to his foster families as it only hurt all the more when he inevitably ran. So, when Freddy had been kicked to the ground, Billy had every intention to leave and not look back. It wasn't any of his business, and he probably would have gone through with it if it hadn't of been for the low blow that the Bryer's decided to throw. Specifically their comment about not having a mommy to run home to.

The comment had snapped something inside of Billy. He didn't know, and frankly didn't care, what had happened to Freddy's parents that had landed him with the Vasquez' but he knew his own mom was out there somewhere. His mom was out there waiting for him, he could feel it in his gut. Where else could she be? Anger flooded his every sense and he couldn't have stopped himself from attacking them if he tried. If it made the Vasquez family happy he would say it was to protect his new 'brother' but it would have been a lie straight through his teeth.  
The small community bus rolled finally rolled to a stop and the doors squealed open. Billy didn't exactly have a destination and the pounding of his heart left him deciding to wait until the next stop to get off. Except the doors never closed and no one got off. Confusion painted his face as he sat up enough to look around the bus, trying to identify the cause of the delay. Come to find out, the bus was empty. Hadn't it been nearly full? Had he really been that out of it that he didn't even notice everyone getting off? "Is this…is this the last stop then?" He called out, hesitantly, before standing and shuffling into the aisle. 

When he reached the front of the bus, he realized that the bus driver was missing as well. The seat had been shredded and there were dark droplets of red flecked across it and trailing down the steps out of the vehicle. Paint, perhaps? But it hadn't been there when he'd gotten on…or maybe it had been? It couldn't be blood, right? What the fuck happened while he was out of it? Billy had blocked some pretty severe and obvious things out while panicking but this seemed a little extensive…

Billy slipped his compass back into his pant pocket and descended the steps of the bus. It was parked directly beside a ditch that sloped into a bordering pine forest. Exactly where a bus stop wouldn't be. "Hello?" His voice was solid despite how badly his legs were trying to shake. The answer he received was not one he expected, nor did he fully comprehend. The forest itself seemed to whisper his name in response, drawing him deeper into it. A reasonable person would have ran in the other direction, and Billy would have, but his legs were moving to their own accord despite struggling against them.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
He had lost track of time. Had it been minutes? Or days? Or maybe it had been an eternity of just walking, there was no way to tell. However, his legs finally gave way beneath him and he once more felt completely in control of his body. Not that it mattered much, on his knees in the mulch, too tired to stand. From deeper within the trees something approached. An old man walking hunched, with long white hair that hooded over his face. Despite his apparent frailty there was a dangerous aura vibrating off of him. Every muscle in Billy's body screamed at him to leave, but intrigue and exhaustion left him rooted to the spot.

"Billy Batson, I choose you as my successor." Billy's throat had closed up at the words and he could only croak out a timid and questioning, 'huh'. "Say my name so my powers may flow through you, the fate of the world will rest in your hands." This man obviously had a few screws loose, but he was overall intimidating. Intimidating enough to make Billy eager to please just to save his hide, self preservation instincts kicking into overdrive. "Sure man...but I don't, uh, know your name." The man's voice dropped an octave as he proclaimed it as 'Shazam'. The ridiculousness of the entire situation, paired with the stupidity of the name and the insane amount of fear pumping through the teen left him giggling. "Wait, for real?" The low light must have been playing tricks on him, because this so called Shazam lunged towards him and grabbed him by the collar of his hoodie, and a faint shimmer crossed his face. Like a poorly made holographic card, where you shifted it to one side and there was a man, and you shifted it to the other and there was a dog. He was lifted to his feet, then further to his tippy toes, a genuine animalistic snarl ripping out of the elder, "Say it!"

Fear pushed him forward as he struggled to touch the ground. "Am I supposed to just say it like…Shazam?" The moment the word slipped from his mouth, he was dropped back to his feet. His slight grounding was short lived however, as he was almost immediately slammed backwards by...by a wolf? His back hit the ground and it stole the breath from his lungs. A scream was tore from the teen before he could even catch his breath as teeth sunk into his shoulder. Warmth rushed down his arm and back, even soaking up towards his neck. It took mere seconds to realize it was blood, as the pain hit him full force. He struggled against the animal on top of him, but it had it's paws planted firmly on his chest and wasn't budging in the slightest.

The beast didn't move. It did not advance to attack again, nor did it make a move to leave. At least not until Billy had stopped struggling against it. Frightened, fatigued, and in pain, Billy couldn't bring himself to fight any longer. The adrenaline in his body had been used up and he was beginning to feel faint. If the damn thing was going to eat him, he wished it would just get on with it. The wolf chuffed and somewhere deep within Billy he could hear a faint 'thank you', before the animal simply...disappeared. Like dust in the wind.


End file.
